Acetylene generator



.L- K. E. DIFFENDERFFER ACETYLENE GENERATGR Filed June 27, 19m. 2 Sheets Sheet l laye/rfa 'L MMM @MM/WWW l ZZ. Jiffy@ Sept 15. :1925.j J. K. E. DIFFENDERFFER 15531517 ACETYLENE GENERATOR Filed Jun# 2'?. 1921` 2 sneessheet 2 IIIIIIIIIIAIIAI/ 'Iliff-fifa:-

Patented Sept. l5, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.`

J' OIIN K. E. DIFFENDERFFER, 0F BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, ASSIGNOR T0 ALEXANDER- MILBURN COMPANY, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, A CORPORATION OF MARYLAND. I

ACETYLENE GENERATOR.

Application filed June 27, 1921.

To all whom t may concer/n:

Be it known that I, JOHN K. E. DIFFEN- DERFFER, a citizen of the United States and resident of Baltimore, Maryland, haveJ invented certain new and useful Improve-V ments in Acetylene Generators, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to gas generating apparatus and particularly to apparatus utilized in the formation of acetylene gas in large volumes.

In factories and manufacturing plants in which large quantities of acetylene are used for supplying cutting and welding torches or for lighting purposes, gas generators of large size are installed, these generators being usually automatic in their operation and adapted 'to operate continuously through i' long periods of time without requiring the services of an attendant. Automatic means is provided for feeding the carbide or similar substance into the tank and for supplying the necessary water thereto, and automatic means is provided for allowing the escape of sludge and water from the bottom of the tank. Heretofore manually operable valves have generally been provided at the tank bottom adapted to be opened from time to time to permit the water and sludge to escape into a suitable waste pipe, owing to the diiiiculties met with in providing a satisfactory automatic device for this purpose. The advantages of having automatic feeding means for water and carb-ide are largely lost where the exhaust means for the sludge and water is manually controlled.

In accordance with the present invention an efficient and automatically acting means is provided for removing the sludge and water from the bottom of the tank so that the entire operation of the apparatus is automatic and it is only necessary to manually replenish the carbide from time to time.

The invention may be embodied in various forms one of which is illustrated in the Serial No. 480,750.

carbide at the top closed by a gas tight cap 11 and a conical bottom or hopper 12for collecting the sludge and guiding it to a central collecting cup or sump 13. The carbide is fed from 'the carbide hopper, illustrated at 14 in dotted lines, on to a cionstantly revolving drum, illustrated at 15 in dotted lines, and drops from this drum into the water, the level of which stands at W'. The gas generated passes out through suitable piping, not shown in detail, and the sludge orv residue from the carbide passes downwardly and gathers upon the conical bottom 12 and principally in the sump 13. A screen 16 intercepts any lumps of carbide passing through the water and retains them until they are dissolved to such an exfiled Dec. 27, 1919, the vrotatable drum 15 being mounted upon a shaft 17 which extends laterally through the wall ofthe tank and the outer end of which is operatively connected through reducing gearing R to the shaft-18 of a rotary water motor-19. The inlet pipe 20 of the water motor is .connected to a suitable source of water supply under pressure, as for instancel to a city water main, and the outlet pipe 21 which is considerably larger in size than the inlet pipe, leads downwardly and enters the tank 10 substantially at a tangent thereto and below the normal water level W.

Below the tank is positioned the waste i* conduit 22 for exhaust water andsludge which conduit may be common to a number of generating units if desired, and connecting the tank and waste conduit is the overflow pipe 23 formed as an inverted U. This pipe has its inlet opening at 24, a considerable distance above the sump 13 and the U-shaped elbow'is positioned at a level at which Ait is desired that the water in the 4 tank shall lie. Pipe 23 is of relatively large size as Icompareld'v v with the inlet pipe and will readily lead'off 'all water necessary to keep the water level in the tank at the desired point. kThe top-of the U-sliaped elbow 25is open tothe atmosphere a. pipe 26 having an open upper end being provided to supply air to prevent the formation of a `vacuum in the overflow pipe 23 such as might possibly occur under vsome circumstances, and thel establishment of a syphon action which might empty the tank.

' Extending through the supporting walls of the tank and through the sump 13 is a water pipe 27 which may be connected to any source of water under pressure such as a city water main, and which has its outlet in the overflow pipe. An ejector is positioned in the sump 13 and is connected in pipe 27v so that its nozzle 28 is supplied with water under pressure, the jet of water issuing from this nozzle passing down the flaring combining tube 29 and entraining water and sludge from the sump, which enter the ejector through the suction conduits 30. After passing from tube 29 the sludge and water continue along the pipe 27' and finally are discharged into the overiow pipe 23 at the elbow 25.

This ejector is preferably designed so as to remove water and sludge from the tank at a rate considerably greater than that at which water enters through pipe 2l. ln order therefore that the ejector be prevented from emptying the tank a gate valve 3l is provided, controlled by a float 32, and this valve governs the operation of the ejector. Referring particularly to Fig. 4 it will be seen that valve 31, which comprises an L- shaped plate'pivotally supported at 38 and connected to float 32 by a wire 34, has a downwardly extending end which is adapted to. move downwardly into suction conduit 30 and to intercept the jet issuing from nozzle 28. The end of this downwardly extending portion is curved toward the nozzle Vand the force of the jet issuing therefrom and impin'ging on the face ofthe valve tends 'to' keep the valve in its closed position and to cause the water ofthe jet to rush upwardly and downwardly through the suction conduits 80 and into the tank, causing eddies and disturbances therein which act to keep the sludge stirred up so that it will readily iiow to the sump.

n The jet flowing from nozzle28 however, together with the water entering the tank through pipe 2l, quickly raises the water level'and tinally'the upward pull of the float 32 is sufficient to overcome the downward force exerted by the jet on the valve level has again risen andthe float has sufficient pull tovraise it. This cycle of operations is continually repeated thereby effecting an entirely automatic and thoroughly efficient removal of the sludge from the generating tank.

An auxiliary 'water inlet pipe is indicated at 4() and an auxiliary outlet pipe at 4l. Normally each of these pipes is closed by a valve but they are ready to be used when the automatic water feeding and exhausting means are not in use.

It is obvious that the design and arrangement of the ejecting device and other parts of the invention may be modified and the invention is therefore not limited to the exact form described and illustrated.

Having described the invention what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is: y

l. The combination with a gas generating tank of the class described, of an ejecting device for removing sludge and waste water, and means for controlling the operation of the ejecting device in accordance with the depth of liquid in the tank.

2. The combination with a gas generating tank of the class described, of an ejecting device for removing sludge and water therefrom and a. valve for controlling the operation of the ejecting device in accordance with the depth of liquid in the tank.

3. The combination with a gas generating tank of the class described, of an ejecting device for removing sludge and water therefrom, said device having a nozzle for forining a jet, and a valve movable. to a position in front of said nozzle to interrupt the jet and to a position adjacent the nozzle to perinit the jet to pass unbroken.

4. rllhe combination with a gas generating' tank of the class described, of an ejectiiig device for removing sludge and water therefrom, said devi-ce having a nozzle for forming a jet, and a valve movable'to a position in front 0f said nozzle to interrupt the jet 'and to a position above the nozzle to permit the jet to pass unbroken and means for controlling the position of the valve in accordance with the level of liquid in the tank.

5. The combination with a gas generating tank of the class described, of an ejectving device for remo-ving sludge and water therefrom, said device having a. combining tube, a suction conduit, a nozzle, and means for causing the jet to flow outwardly through the suction conduit, or through the combining tube.

6. The combination With a gas generating tank of the class described adapted to contain a liquid, of an ejecting device for removing sludge and Water therefrom, said device having a combining tube', a suction conduit, a nozzle, and means controlled by the depth of liquid in the tank for causing the jet to flow outwardly through the suction conduit, or through the combining tube.

7 The combination With a gas generating tank of the class described adapted to contain Water, of an ejecting device for removing sludge and Water therefrom, said device having a combining tube, a suction conduit, a nozzle, a valve for causing the jet to flow outwardly through the suction conduit, or through the combining tube and a float resting upon the level of the Water in the tank and connected to the valve for controlling the operation thereof.

8. The combination With a gas generating tank of the class described, of an ejecting device for removing sludge and Water therefrom, said device having a combining tube, a suction conduit, a nozzle, a valve for causing the jet to flow outwardly through the suction conduit, or through the combining tube, said valve being movable transversely across the jet and being formed with a portion inclined to the axis of the jet so that the force of the jet normally tends to keep the valve in position to; close the combining tube.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature. l

JOHN K. E. DIFFEivnianriucn. f 

